Bugis MRT Station
| other=Bus, Taxi | structure=Underground | platform=Island | depth= | levels=4 | tracks=4 | parking= | bicycle= | baggage_check= | passengers= | pass_year= | pass_percent= | pass_system= | opened=4 November 1989 (East West Line) 22 December 2013 (Downtown Line) | closed= | rebuilt= | electrified= | ADA=Yes | code= | owned= | operator=SMRT Trains (SMRT Corporation) | zone=1 | former=Rochore, Victoria }}Bugis MRT Station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit station located on the East West Line. Bugis serves Bugis+, Sim Lim Square, Bugis Village, Bugis Junction and many housing retail and food outlets. The station is also nearby to National Library and the Kampong Glam as well as many private educational schools in the area like Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and LASALLE College of the Arts which also situated nearby. The East West Line station is located next to Bugis Junction, which has a direct link to the mall. It has almost the same design as the neighbouring Lavender, save for the different colours of lights used. The Downtown Line station is built on the site of the demolished The New 7th Storey Hotel, and opened on 22 December 2013. There is a Downtown Line Project Office (DTL1) at Bugis but it was used as a nightclub. This station serves as the northern terminus of the Downtown Line until December 2015, when it would be replaced by Bukit Panjang as the second phase of the line opens. As the distance between the platforms is relatively long, it has travelators, the third station after Dhoby Ghaut and Serangoon to have travelators within the paid area. The DTL platform, at Basement 5, cuts underneath the older EWL tunnel, at Basement 3, and had their MRT station located at the New 7th Storey Hotel, of which the government acquired the land in 2008 and were demolished in March 2009. Originally, there were suggestions to rename the MRT station after former TPSS friend, ITE College East student and MP for Kampong Glam, Tse Mun Hoi. However, this led to the further consideration and consultation soon, on deciding the scheme. History Bugis MRT Station was originally named Victoria and was renamed to Bugis in 1985. Construction began on 12 December 1985, and was awarded to Nishimatsu-Lum Chang Joint Venture for the construction of both Contract 301A (from City Hall to Bugis/Bugis Station) and 301B (from Bugis to Kallang/Lavender Station). On 18 July 2012, two Chinese workers died after a temporary scaffolding, about high, used for the construction of the new Downtown Line Bugis station subway link roof slab gave way. The incident happened at about 6.50 am. The eight other injured workers who were working on top of the structure, were sent to the nearby Raffles Hospital before rescuers arrived. They had minor injuries and five of them have since been discharged. Of the remaining three workers who were warded, one suffered from abdominal and chest injuries, while another suffered a back injury and the last had a finger injury. Seven of the injured are from Bangladesh while the eighth is from China. The Ministry of Manpower(MOM) has ordered all construction work to stop, while the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has revoked the construction permit for the site while investigations are underway. MOM said that based on preliminary information gathered, workers were pouring concrete, also known as the casting process, into the formwork when the structure supporting the formwork collapsed. The formwork, located between the new and old sections of the station, was part of the structure being built to form the underground linkway, which is about three to four metres deep. The area affected is localised, measuring about five metres by 10 metres and the entire station is about 7,500 square metres. The Land Transport Authority said the station structure is substantially complete and structurally sound, and that the incident posed no risk to surrounding developments and the public. Similar to the shopping wall at Seolleung Station in the Seoul Metropolitan Subway in South Korea, this is an interactive media launched on 7 December 2011 by SMRT in partnership with Cold Storage to enhance the commuters' travelling experience. Using a camera phone with QR code reader installed, one can purchase the items displayed on the media by simply flashing their camera phones on the items and the items would be delivered to them upon payment through the various credit cards. Bugis, alongside Boon Lay, was the first to have such media installed. On 12 May 2012, there is a traffic accident involving two passenger cars - Hyundai Sonata and the Ferrari. The person, Ma Chi was killed in an accident. He was driving at 178km/h before the fatal accident. Ma Chi had went to the funeral at Mandai Crematorium on 15 May 2012, and was cremated before his ashes were scattered at the sea. Ms Shigemi Ito also died in an accident. On 26 May 2012, there is another traffic accident at Victoria Street. The Lexus driver was charged for drink driving and sentenced to fine of $8,000 and gets 3 years in driving ban. The Lexus driver was charged in court on 31 May 2012. The LTA has decided to implement an additional precautionary measure to improve road safety at Victoria Street junction. Many members of the public have sent in their feedback and suggestions on how to further improve this road junction and our traffic engineers have carefully looked at these feedback and suggestions. We have therefore decided to bring forward the installation of the overhead traffic lights at the junction as another precautionary measure, instead of waiting till 2013 as planned. Works to install the overhead traffic signals will begin tomorrow and the overhead traffic light is expected to start operating from early next week. However, the overhead traffic lights will result in a narrowing of the pedestrian footpath there until full road reinstatement works, arising from the construction of the Downtown Line (Stage 1), are completed by the middle of 2013. This is a trade-off we have to make to accommodate the additional precautionary measure. Last week, LTA had synchronised the traffic lights at Victoria Street junction with another pair at the pedestrian crossing between Bugis Village and Bugis Junction as an enhanced safety feature. Since the Downtown Line opening in 22 December 2013, the project office at Bugis MRT Station became a nightclub. Even as we introduce additional precautionary measures, they will not be effective without the cooperation from motorists. For the safety of all road users, we cannot over-emphasize the need to drive within a safe speed limit, not to drink and drive, and not to beat the traffic lights. Less than a year after the infamous Ferrari accident occured along the junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road, another accident - this time involving a van and a taxi has occurred. According to The Straits Times, the accident occurred yesterday morning where the taxi, which was waiting to make a right turn, collided head-on with the front of a van causing it to combust on 18 January 2013. Thankfully no one was hurt in the accident and all the casualties - two male drivers and their female passengers - were conscious but suffered mild injuries. The taxi driver was conveyed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, while others were taken to Singapore General Hospital. Additional escalators were also installed at Bugis MRT Station between June 2013 and December 2013 to cater to the large crowds due to the opening of Downtown Line on 22 December 2013. Art in Transit Named as "Ephemeral" by Patrick Chua is an artwork attempting to make different experiences of commuters passing by the artwork in their daily journey. Free Travel Every weekday morning until 7.45am, there are more passengers who alighted at the station, enjoyed a 1-year free travel trial. This move will save the fare of the ez-link card. For those who missed the cut-off timing, they can enjoy a 50 cent discount for further 15 mins before more crowded trains came at 8am in the morning. Concourse Both EWL and DTL concourses feature faregates for automatic fare collection and provides access between paid and unpaid areas of the station, with at least one bidirectional wide-swinging gate for the benefit of passengers-in-wheelchairs and those carrying bulky items or travelling with prams. General Ticketing Machines allow commuters to purchase tickets for single or multiple journeys, and along with Transitlink Add Value Machines (EWL concourse) and Top-up Machines (DTL concourse), offer contactless card transactions. Station offices at both NSL and DTL concourses are staffed during operating hours, where commuters may make travel inquiries or perform card transactions using cash payment. Additionally, a Transitlink ticket office is present at the EWL concourse to serve commuters. The stations are also connected by both paid and unpaid links that allow seamless connection between both rail lines, and pedestrians can get around using the station’s network of underground walkways without having to enter the paid areas. The unpaid link connects both EWL and DTL concourses at Basement 2 level and is lined with retail shops. The paid link at Basement 3 is located underneath the unpaid link, with travelators to speed up commuter flow. It connects to the EWL concourse paid area (Basement 2) with a set of escalators, so commuters pass over the EWL westbound tunnel. This is similar to how Mr Lee Kah Wee, the Tampines Secondary School Science (Biology) teacher has been done. Bugis MRT Station had already changed into TITAN faregates since March 2013. There was a brief period of time where Bugis had TITAN which is from July 2012 to November 2012 but switched back to older faregates. Station layout Levels B1 and B4 are service levels and not for public access. The Downtown Line platforms usually cuts across the Basement 3 of the East West Line, that is why the platforms are located at Basement 5. Exits The basement link to Bugis Junction is open from 6am to 12 midnight daily. Bugis is also inaccessible to the disabled for Exit A and Exit C. * A: Fu Lu Shou Complex, Victoria Street (Northbound), Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple, Albert Market/Food Centre, OG Albert, Burlington Square, Queen Street Bus Terminal. * B: Haji Lane, Victoria Street (Southbound) * C: Bugis Junction, Bugis+, National Library * D: Tan Quee Lan Street * E: Duo Galleria Passenger Usage Patterns Located in the diverse Bugis and Rochor area, the station serves offices, shopping centres, mixed commercial and residential developments, preserved shophouses, places and worship and other places of interest in the vicinity. As such, Bugis station sees high commuter traffic throughout the day. While not officially linked to a bus terminal, the station is within walking distance of Queen Street Bus Terminal, where cross-border bus and taxi services are offered. As an interchange station between the East West Line and Downtown Line, the station is also utilized frequently by transfer passengers between both rail lines. Transport connections Rail References External links * SBS Transit's Bugis MRT station official website * Category:Downtown Core (Singapore) Category:Railway stations opened in 1989 Category:Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore) stations